Central Park Jogger Rape Trials: 1990

The verdict was a surprise to both sides. Jurors believed that Wise had been pressured into making the second videotape and convicted him only of sexual abuse, assault, and riot. Richardson, who had confessed to being present during the rape but denied taking part, was found guilty on all counts. The jury decided that physical evidence, including semen in Richardson's underwear and a strand of the victim's pubic hair found on his shirt, was more damning than any of the videotaped confessions. The absence of identical verdicts also disregarded the judge's instructions concerning the concept of "acting in concert," which holds that those who contribute to a major crime are liable to prosecution for its most serious aspects, even if they participate to a lesser degree.

Richardson's family shouted angry insults at prosecutors and the judge, accusing them of racism. "… you'll pay for this," Wise spat at Lederer as he was led away amid the uproar.

Richardson received the maximum sentence for minors. Wise, the only defendant who was not a minor when he was arrested, was sentenced as an adult to slightly less than half of the maximum sentence.

Ironically, the suspect accused by the convicted youths of raping and beating the jogger most violently never stood trial. Only Steven Lopez had not given police an incriminating statement. Prosecutors prepared to try him for rape anyway, but the accusations of his codefendants were inadmissible and other witnesses ultimately refused to testify.

A plea bargain allowed Lopez to admit his part in the earlier muggings and plead guilty to a charge of robbery. In sentencing Lopez to 1V/z-41/z years imprisonment for his part in the "sadistic rampage" in Central Park, Judge Galligan called the conviction "the final chapter of a cowardly attack that will continue to live in the hearts of New Yorkers."